Extension slide having band adjustment means



o. A. BEECK 3,078,131

EXTENSION SLIDE HAVING BAND ADJUSTMENT MEANS Feb. 19, 1963 Filed Jan. 13, 1961 INVENTOR. 0770 A. BEECK A T TOIQNEY Unite States 3,078,131 EXTENSION SLIDE HAVING BAND ADJUS'IlWENT MEANS ()tto A. Beech, 158 Jericho Turnpike, Floral Park, N.Y. Filed Jan. 13, 1961, Ser. No. 82,632 2 Claims. (Cl. 308-33) This invention relates generally to extension slides with particular reference to an extension slide which permits of the simultaneous control of the top sections of an extension table so that said sections can be simultaneously opened and closed from either end of the table.

This application is a continuation-in-part of United States patent application Serial Number 37,895 filed June 22, 1960.

In that application there was disclosed a slide which could simultaneously open and close and otherwise simultaneously control both top sections of an extension table. This was accomplished by providing the central slide with a flexible metallic band which was adapted to be moved longitudinally around said central slide and thereafter affixing the lateral slide components to said band. The band was actually mounted on rollers provided at each end of the central slide so that there would be a minimum of resistance against its movement.

In the above construction, the rollers were positioned in recesses formed at the ends of the central slide making it difficult to properly mount a pro-formed band on said rollers. A pro-formed band would necessarily fit loosely about the central slide and hence, would not be properly tensioned. Additionally, the dimensional requirements for. the band differ. from slide to slide.

Because of these difficulties, it was not feasible to stock pile a quantity of bands in advance and each band was heretofore custom fit to its respective slide thus complicating the assembly of the slide and increasing its cost.

It is therefore amongst the primary objects of the presour invention to provide in a slide of the class described a means whereby the band could be properly adjusted and tensioned after the same has been mounted on the slide.

It is another important object of the present invention to provide a slide of the class described which can utilize pre-formed bands taken from a stock pile made up in advance.

It is yet a further object of the present invention to provide a slide of the class described whereupon a preformed metallic band can be easily and properly mounted.

How these and other objects are accomplished and new results are attained will be apparent from what is described in the following specification, particularly pointed out in the claims, and illustrated in the accompanying drawing wherein:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a slide in accordance with the present invention,

FIG. 2 is an end view thereof with certain parts removed for better clarity,

' FIG. 3 is a top plan view of the slide of FIG. 1 with its band control mechanism shown in phantom,

FIG. 4 is a sectional view taken on line 4-4 of FIG. 3 in the direction of the arrows,

FIG. 5 is a perspective view of a mounting for rollers in accordance with the present invention, and

FIG. 6 is a perspective view of an end of the central slide showing its recess.

Referring now to the drawing, a table slide in accordance with the present invention is shown in FIG. 1 consisting of lateral beams 10 and 14 slidably mounted on either side of central beam 12 for movement longitudinally thereof.

In this particular embodiment of the invention, beams Ill, 12 and 14 are of wood, as is conventional with table slides, and is adapted for use with an extension table that 3,078,131 Patented Feb. 19, 1953 has two permanent top sections and one or more supplemental top sections, the supplemental top sections being adapted to be positioned between the permanent sections when the table is fully or partly opened.

In actual practice, an extension table is provided with two such slides to insure balanced support of the top sections. Each of said slides is afiixed to one of the permanent table top sections by one of its lateral members and to the other of said permanent top sections by its other lateral member. An extension table utilizing such slides has been omitted from the drawing so as not to unduly encumber the same.

It should be realized that although the extension slide herein disclosed is best illustrated with respect to extension tables, the invention is not so limited being applicable to situations wherein two members are slidably interconnected by a third member disposed therebetween. Additionally, the invention is not limited merely to the three beam slide shown, the number of beams being chosen with respect to contemplated use.

Aluminum tracks 18 recessed in opposing faces of the beams cooperate with nylon rollers carried by the slide beams to achieve the desired sliding motion. Each roller assemblage includes a primary roller 2%} which runs within a track and a secondary roller 22 which, as may be seen in FIG. 2, is adapted to ride on flanges 24 of opposing tracks. This balanced construction insures extremely smooth and easy operation and is most wear resistant.

Track flanges 24 confine primary rollers 20 within their respective tracks to lock the slide members together. Each beam making up the slide is provided with a roller assemblage which cooperates with the traclcof the next adjacent beam. The roller assemblages are mounted at opposite ends of successive slide members and, as will be realized, prevents the slide members from disengaging each other by acting as an extension stop. Wooden inserts 26 having a configuration which conforms with that or" track 18 are mounted at the ends of the tracks to limit the advance of the slide members in the retraction direction.

In table slides, it is of great advantage that lateral members 10 and 14 are simultaneously con-trolled and coordinated. This is accomplished by longitudinally mounting a band of metallic tape 28 about center slide 14, which is longitudinally grooved as at St and 32 to receive the same, and thereafter linking members 10 and '14 to said band to thereby interconnect and coordinate the said lateral members. The tension on band 28, when mounted on member 12 as aforesaid, should be such that the band is freely movable around member 12 and additionally, reliably maintained in position thereon. Pins 38 and 49 mounted in slide members It and 14, respectively, extend through openings in band 28 to operatively interconnect the said slide members with respect to movement.

Rollers 34 and 36 are rotatably mounted at the ends of center slide 12 to reduce resistance against the movement of the band. The rollers may be positioned above or below the aforementioned tracks. Suitable recesses such as 34 are provided at the ends of beam 12 to house the rollers and facilitate the mounting of the band.

As heretofore stated however, if the band is preformed, which is most desirable from the viewpoint of manufacturing, it is difiicult to mount the band on the center slide. If the band is made large enough so that it can be easily mounted, it will fit the center slide too loosely and will not be under the proper tension. Additionally, the dimensions of the center slide will differ slightly from slide to slide thus further complicating the problem.

In accordance with the present invention, this may be overcome by adjustably mounting one of the said rollers 6 on the center slide as shown in the drawing wherein roller 36 is affixed to a mounting consisting of upper and lower members 4-1 and 42 maintained in spaced relationship by cylindrically shaped member 44 on which the said roller is rotatably maintained. Slotted extensions 46 and 4 8 are provided for members 4-1 and 42, respectively. Upper and lower passages 50 and 52 formed in the central slide communicate with recess 34' to receive the said slotted extensions.

By reason of the foregoing construction, roller 36 and its mounting can be moved inwardly of recess 34' during the mounting of the band thus simplifying the mounting of the same. After the band has been positioned on the central slide, the roller and its mounting can then be moved outwardly of recess 34 until the band is under proper tension.

When the band is under proper tension, the roller and its mounting are clamped in position by screw 54 which is adapted to extend through the slots 56 of extensions 46 and 48. The above described construction of the central slide makes the upper end portion thereof resilient to a certain extent and adapted to be clamped to the roller assemblage as described.

It is to be understood that the invention is not confined to the particular form or use shown herein, the same being merely illustrative, and that the invention may be carried out in other ways without departing from the spirit thereof and therefore, the right is broadly claimed to employ all equivalent instrumentalities coming within the scope of the appended claims and by means of which the objects of the invention are attained and new results accomplished, as it should be apparent that the particular embodiment herein shown and described is only one of the many that can be employed to attain these objects and accomplish these results.

What is claimed as new and desired to be secured by United States Letters Patent is:

1. A slide comprising a central support member, slide components slidably aiiixed to opposite sides of said central member for movement longitudinally thereof, a recess formed at each end of said center member, a passage formed in said center member, said passage extending longitudinally from one of the said recesses, a roller rotatably mounted in each recess, a continuous band of flexible metallic tape mounted on said rollers for movement around said center member, each slide component being interconnected with said band whereby said s ide components are coordinated for simultaneous extension and retraction, at least one of said roller mountings being movable with respect to said slide so that its roller can be adjusted within its recess with respect to said band, said mounting including an extension extending into said longitudinal passage, and means for clamping said extension to said slide.

2. A slide in accordance with claim 1 wherein the extension is slotted and is clamped to the slide by means of a screw which extends through the slot.

References Cited in the tile of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 96,209 Dourson Oct. 26, 1869 143,554 Livingstonet al. Oct. 7, 1873 150,496 Valentin May 5, 1874 761,401 Reynolds May 31, 1904 1,080,043 Bradner Dec. 2, 1913 1,121,611 Casper Dec. 22, 1914 1,176,937 Walter Mar. 28, 1916 1,836,883 Stone Dec. 15, 1931 1,939,529 Taylor Dec. 12, 1933 1,960,506 Plleger May 29, 1934 2,068,743 Green Jan. 26, 1937 2,304,843 Nordquist Dec. 15, 1942 2,629,642 Whallon Feb. 24, 1953 

1. A SLIDE COMPRISING A CENTRAL SUPPORT MEMBER, SLIDE COMPONENTS SLIDABLY AFFIXED TO OPPOSITE SIDES OF SAID CENTRAL MEMBER FOR MOVEMENT LONGITUDINALLY THEREOF, A RECESS FORMED AT EACH END OF SAID CENTER MEMBER, A PASSAGE FORMED IN SAID CENTER MEMBER, SAID PASSAGE EXTENDING LONGITUDINALLY FROM ONE OF THE SAID RECESSES, A ROLLER ROTATABLY MOUNTED IN EACH RECESS, A CONTINUOUS BAND OF FLEXIBLE METALLIC TAPE MOUNTED ON SAID ROLLERS FOR MOVEMENT AROUND SAID CENTER MEMBER, EACH SLIDE COMPONENT BEING INTERCONNECTED WITH SAID BAND WHEREBY SAID SLIDE COMPONENTS ARE COORDINATED FOR SIMULTANEOUS EXTENSION AND RETRACTION, AT LEAST ONE OF SAID ROLLER MOUNTINGS BEING MOVABLE WITH RESPECT TO SAID SLIDE SO THAT ITS ROLLER CAN BE ADJUSTED WITHIN ITS RECESS WITH RESPECT TO SAID BAND, SAID MOUNTING INCLUDING AN EXTENSION EXTENDING INTO SAID LONGITUDINAL PASSAGE, AND MEANS FOR CLAMPING SAID EXTENSION TO SAID SLIDE. 